In 1977 I was a 2Lt. in the Air Force, assigned to an office out of the Pentagon. I lived in Alexandria VA. I had reporters call me more than once wanting to talk to me and thinking I was Tom Harkin's nephew because my last name is Harkins. They refused to accept, “Not me.” as an answer. I have never trusted anything reporters said since.

What bothers me is that when most politicians retire, they don't live in the hell they created for the rest of us. Many move on to high paying lobbyist or consultant jobs. My guess is that government pensions are pretty lucrative, even for those who served only a few years.